Loyalty card data could identify early ovarian cancer symptoms

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Data extracted from retailer loyalty cards on purchases of over-the-counter medicine could help to spot ovarian cancer cases early, a new UK study suggests.

Researchers at Imperial College London studied the buying habits of almost 300 women. They found that pain and indigestion medication purchases were high in women subsequently diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

The change in buying habit was identified eight months before the women were diagnosed, they say, in a first-of-its-kind study, published in * JMIR Public Health and Surveillance*.

Symptoms of ovarian cancer can be unclear in the early stages of the disease and can include loss of appetite, stomach pain and bloating, the researchers say.

Study lead author Dr James Flanagan, from Imperial’s Department of Surgery & Cancer, said: “The cancer symptoms we are looking for are very common, but for some women, they could be the first signs of something more serious.

“Using shopping data, our study found a noticeable increase in purchases of pain and indigestion medications among women with ovarian cancer up to eight months before diagnosis, compared with women without ovarian cancer. This suggests that long before women have recognised their symptoms as alarming enough to go to the GP, they may be treating them at home.